Three Royals Prospects in the DSL to Pay Attention to

 It's been a strong season for the Royals' two teams in the Dominican Summer League.

As of Tuesday, the Royals' Ventura and Fortuna teams have records of 36-13 and 31-17, respectively. Both teams lead their respective divisions and have the best and 5th-best records in the 51-team DSL, as highlighted by the Raising Royals player development account. 

The DSL can be a bit of a crapshoot when evaluating prospects. Typically, the prospects are so young that it's difficult to tell how they will fare in the long term. It's quite common for heralded DSL prospects to struggle when they hit the States, whether it's the Complex League or Low-A Columbia.

Erick Peña is a prime example of a former top international signing who floundered after moving to affiliated ball. Peña never advanced beyond Low-A Columbia, and he had a career OPS of .575 in 1,022 career at-bats before being released after the 2024 season (though he did break the franchise career home run record in his tenure). 

The Royals have invested heavily in rebuilding their international scouting department under International Scouting Director Daniel Guerrero, a former Washington Nationals scout who's been in the role since 2023, when JJ Picollo took over the reins from Dayton Moore. As a result of the past three years of Guerrero's work, the Royals have not only brought more intriguing international players into the farm system but have also shown a better track record of development recently. 

Three players who have particularly been early successes in the Royals DSL program are outfielder Angeibel Gomez and shortstops Jaider Suarez and Warren Calcaño.

Two of those three players played in this year's DSL All-Star Game on July 19th and performed well in the showcase event.

Hence, let's see what all three players have done this year, and what Royals fans can expect from the trio in 2027 and beyond. 

Gomez May Be Royals' No. 1 Prospect by Next Spring

It seems blasphemous to rank anyone above pitcher Kendry Chourio, especially since Chourio was recently named Midwest Pitcher of the Month for July as an 18-year-old. 

That said, what the 17-year-old outfielder is doing in the DSL is incredibly impressive. 

In 43 games and 169 plate appearances, Gomez is hitting .356 with a 1.104 OPS. He has eight home runs, 45 runs scored, 34 RBI, and 13 stolen bases on 15 attempts. He also has an ISO of .281 and a 16% BB%, which is 5.3% higher than his K%. 

Thus, Gomez is doing well overall as an outfielder in his first professional exposure. He's hitting for average, he's showing discipline at the plate, speed on the basepaths, and plenty of power. In fact, in Tuesday's victory over the Astros, he launched two home runs, the first time in his career that he has accomplished the feat.

It's not common to see the power stats that Gomez is producing. Typically, the DSL can be a hitters' league, but due to players' ages and development as well as the park factors, home runs are rare. And yet, not only does Gomez have eight home runs in 43 games, but he is also hitting multiple home runs in games (and against good organizations). 

What makes Gomez so intriguing as a prospect and different from most DSL prospects, too, is that scouts absolutely love him. He's probably getting more buzz than Chourio did when Chourio was pitching in the DSL a year ago. 

Here's what Alex Jensen of Prospects Live said about Gomez after the Royals outfield prospect's two-homer game today.

It wouldn't be out of the question to see Gomez not just become the Royals' top prospect by Spring Training of next year, but perhaps be a Top-10 prospect in all of baseball. That's how much love he's receiving from scouts due to his tools, profile, makeup, and overall performance in the DSL this season. 

The Royals lack an outfielder in their system they can build around long-term. It seems like Gomez has come to break that prospect dry spell in the outfield, though it may take 2-3 years.

Suarez Proving to Be A Complete Package

Suarez was one of the Royals' top international signings a year ago. A shortstop out of Cuba, Kansas City signed him to a $1.7 million signing bonus. He was one of the Royals' most expensive signings from last year's class. That said, it was for good reason, as Suarez impressed international scouts with his tools.

While Suarez hasn't produced the power numbers of Gomez, he's been as impressive in nearly every other category. 

In 37 games and 153 plate appearances with the Royals Fortuna squad, he is hitting .374 with a 1.050 OPS. He has two home runs, 30 runs scored, 19 RBI, and 26 stolen bases on 30 attempts. From a stolen base standpoint, Suarez may have more upside than Gomez. Furthermore, Suarez's plate discipline is solid, like Gomez's, with a BB% of 19% and a K% of 18.3%. 

The Cuban prospect has also been known for coming through in the clutch in his short tenure with the Fortuna squad. That was illustrated in his walk-off single on June 11th. 

At 6'1, 180 pounds, it will be interesting to see if Suarez sticks at shortstop. If anything, he may move to the hot corner, especially if he fills out more into his tall frame. That said, many scouts, including Baseball America experts, feel Suarez has 20+ HR upside, which may make a move to third base realistic in the future. 

Gomez is getting all the attention in the Royals' DSL complex right now, and rightfully so. However, Royals fans shouldn't sleep on Suarez, who could be a Top-100 prospect himself in the near future and a Top-5 prospect in the Royals system by midseason next year, especially if he transitions well to the Complex and/or Low-A Columbia. 

Calcaño Overcomes Slow Start

Originally a Top-20 prospect at Royals Keep, Calcaño fell out of our rankings after a slow start to the DSL season with the Ventura squad. Calcaño was a high-profile signing in 2025, as the Royals inked him to a $2 million signing bonus. 

In 17 games and 72 plate appearances from June 1st to July 2nd, the 18-year-old shortstop hit .207 with a .645 OPS and a 0.55 BB/K ratio. While the lack of power was to be expected from Calcaño (.086 ISO and zero home runs), he also had a high K% at 27.8%. That's not what Royals fans were hoping for from their heralded 2025 international signing out of the Dominican Republic.

Since July 2nd, in 93 plate appearances, he is hitting .328 with a .967 OPS. He has 22 walks to 11 strikeouts, good for a 2.00 BB/K ratio. He also has demonstrated more power during this stretch with one home run and a .150 ISO. Even though the power upside remains tame compared to Gomez and Suarez, it's nice to see him showcase a home run stroke as well as gap-to-gap power (three doubles and two triples since July 2nd). 

Like Suarez, Calcaño had his own clutch moment, with a walk-off single against the Orioles Black squad. 

There's a lot more room for projection with Calcaño, and due to his size (6'1, 154 pounds), his profile is closer to Maikel Garcia than Bobby Witt Jr. (who is more comparable to Suarez and Gomez). However, Calcaño profiles as a player who can play all over the infield (and maybe the outfield), and he's a switch-hitter with strong contact ability and plate discipline on both sides of the plate.

One thing to keep in mind about Calcaño is that his 2025 season was cut short by a shoulder injury, and it's possible there were lingering effects in his first month in the DSL. Aram Leighton of Just Baseball brought this up in a write-up about Calcaño back in April on Twitter. 

Even though he isn't in our Top-20 Prospects list anymore, he may be returning to that list soon, though he will likely rank lower than both Suarez and Gomez by the next edition.  

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